1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a backlight assembly and a display device having the same, and more particularly to a backlight assembly having a slim outer appearance and a display device having the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
There are several kinds of display devices that are in use today. Among them, display devices equipped with a liquid crystal display (LCD) panel of enhanced performance has become one of the most predominant display devices, in part due to the rapidly developing semiconductor technology.
A display device equipped with an LCD panel has advantageous characteristics such as small size, light weight and low power consumption, and has attracted attention as a potential replacement for the cathode ray tube (CRT) as the mainstream display device. A display device equipped with the LCD panel is installed in most information processing devices that employ a screen, for example in a small product such as a mobile phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA) and a portable multimedia player (PMP), and in mid to large products such as a notebook computer, a monitor and a television.
Since the LCD panel is a not a self-emitting device, the LCD device usually uses a backlight assembly for supplying light to the LCD panel. The backlight assembly comprises a light source unit and other components such as a light guide plate, an optical sheet, a reflection member, an holding member, supporting member, an inverter circuit board, etc.
Since the backlight assembly is usually incorporated into the display device, the display device becomes thicker as the backlight assembly becomes thicker. However, a backlight assembly that is thin and capable of providing enhanced brightness, uniformity, and reliability is desired to meet consumer demands.
As the backlight assembly performance is enhanced and its importance in the display device is increased, the backlight assembly needs more components. A side effect of the increasingly important role played by the backlight assembly is that its thickness tends to increase as well.
This increase in display device thickness is undesirable, especially if the display device used in a product like notebook computer or monitor where compactness is an important characteristic. Accordingly, flat and thin backlight assembly is desired.